Package for toys

ABSTRACT

A toy package in the form of a carton having an open front through which the toy can be displayed and including internal means preventing unauthorized removal of the toy from the carton, especially floor means engageable with a lower inner part of the toy to accomplish this purpose.

- 0 1 i UmtedSt ates Patent 1 3,576,253

[72] Inventors Richard L. Keats 3,424,299 1/1969 Rosenburg 206/45.l4 Port Washington, N.Y.; 3,378,137 4/1968 Stone 206/45.14 Jerry D. Wood, Plainfield, NJ. 2,980,240 4/1961 Amatel 206/45.14 [21] Appl. No. 864,925 2,723,747 11/1955 Oxenfeld.. 206/45.14 [22] Filed Sept. 9, 1969 2,283,950 5/1942 Ringler 229/34 [45] Patented Apr. 27, 1971 2,008,664 7/1935 Dowst 206/45.19 [73] Assignee Buddy L. Corporation FOREIGN PATENTS 1,075,422 7/1967 Great Britain 206/45.14

Primary Examiner-Leonard Summer [54] PACKAGE FOR TOYS Attorney-Harold M. Knoth 8 Claims, 10 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl. 206/45.14 [51] lnt.Cl. 865d 5/50 [50] Field of Search 206/45.14,

4519 ABSTRACT: A toy package in the form of a carton having an open front through which the toy can be displayed and [56] References Cited including internal means preventing unauthorized removal of UNITED STATES PATENTS the toy from the carton, especially floor means engageable 3,482,678 12/1969 Mason 206/45. 14 with a lower inner part of the toy to accomplish this purpose.

PATENTEDAPR27197:

SHEET 2 OF 2 INVENTORS R.L.KEATS 8 J D WOOD PACKAGE FOR TOYS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The simplest way to package a toy, like any other article, is to enclose it completely in an opaque package'and depend upon pictures etc. to inform the purchaser what the packaged article is. More recently, however, toys are being packaged in cartons including either a transparent wall or a blister" so that the toy can be readily seen. In either case, the exact nature of the toy is to some extent concealed. n the other hand, the display of the toy without a package leads to vpilferage, undesirable handling, necessity for repacking etc. The problems involved in adequate display are tied in with problems of shipping, storing etc. and no prior packaging system has solved both problems, not along others that arise in peculiar instances.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, the novel package comprises a carton of conventional materials, such as socalled chip board and/or corrugated cardboard, open at its front to receive and display the toy and including internal means for preventing unauthorized removal of the toy. The

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a composite exploded" perspective illustrating one form of the invention. I

FIG. 2 shows a closed condition of the box of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged section showing, in somewhat exaggerated form, the means for retaining the toy.

FIG. 4 is a reduced-scale illustration, showing the outline of the entire representative toy as shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a small-scale front view of the toy as packaged.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view, similar to FIG. 3, showing a modified form of retaining means for the toy.

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing a modified form of package. I FIG. 8 is a section showing the toy as packaged.

FIG. 9 is a front view of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a view like FIG. 7 but showing a further form of package.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS v In FIG. 1, the basic carton is shown at as including a boxlike configuration and constructed of so-called chipboard and having top and bottom walls 22 and 24, a backwall 26 and opposite end walls 28, leaving the front of the box with an open front 30. Chipboard is preferred because it is easy to lithograph and therefore lends itself to attractive colors etc.

Integral with the box are four flaps 32, 34, 36 and 38 joined respectively to the top and bottom and end walls. The bottom wall has a central opening 40 therein for purposes to be described. Because of the characteristic flexibility of the chipboard construction, the flaps can be folded within the box and have a certain amount of resiliency that is exploited by constructing the flaps so that they do not interfere with each other; that is, the flaps may be tapered or otherwise shaped, as at 42,- so that when the bottom flap 36 is folded into the box the end flaps do not confine it against upward springing" movement.

A further part of the FIG. 1 construction is a liner 44 of corrugated cardboard construction, conformed to fit within The liner has a bottom formed with an upstruck means 52 to engage the packaged toy, here a scale or near-scale model vehicle 54 including wheels 56. Because of the inherent resiliency of the liner, the means'52 has a tendency to move upwardly.

When the box is assembled, the insert 46 is placed within the box so as to overlie the backwall 26 and then the liner 44 is inserted, after which the flaps 34, 36, 38 and 40 are folded inwardly, thus making the liner 44'captive. The bottom flap 36 overlies the means 52 and combines therewith to achieve floor means for retaining the toy in place. That is to say, and noting especially FIGS. 3 and 4, the top is inserted into the box so that the wheels 56 slide over the folded-in bottom flap 36, tending to depress it against not only its own inherent bias but also that of the means 52. The toy is closely confined within the box because the box is especially dimensioned to receive this particular toy, noting that the top part of the toy, as at 58, is engaged from above by the folded-in top flap 34, and, as well, the toy is confined against relative fore-and-aft shifting in the box.

Significant is that the means 52, as well as the folded-in bottom flap 36, tenninates short of the backwall and insert 44, so as-to leave a recess 60 between the insert and the rear or inner edge of the means 52. Thus, as the toy is inserted into the package, the bottomor floor means is depressed as the inner wheels 56 slide thereacross, and when these inner wheels reach the recess 60, the floor means springs up ahead of the wheels as a resilient locking means, engaging the wheels of the toy so as to prevent removal of the toy from the package. See FIGS. 3 and 4.

To assure that the inherent resilience of the floor means is effective, the opening 40 enables the packer to push upwardly on the means 52, while the floor tab or flap 36, overlying the means 52, provides a means for depressing the floor means to permit authorized removal of the toy from the box. It is preferred, however, that this possibility is not made available to the onlooker so that he or she cannotremove the toy for handling or pilferage. The toy in this instance has extra-wide wheels 56 and the inner ones are accommodated by the circular recesses 60.

If desired, and for long-range shipping, the package may assume the condition of FIG. 2, wherein the flaps are folded externally, leaving it to the receiver of the package to rearrange same in the manner described above.

In the modification shown in FIG. 6, the floor of the liner 44' has different form of wheel-engaging means 52' but the function is the same.

In the open-front construction illustrated in FIGS. 7-9, the carton 70 is wholly of corrugated cardboard having flaps 72, 74, 76 and 78. The bottom flap 74, when folded within the box terminates short of the rear wall so as to leave a recess or trough 80 (FIG. 8) into which the inner wheels 82 of the vehicle are received, the flap 74 springing up of course to lock the vehicle in the box.

The one'end flap 78 is split at 84 to provide upper and lower parts 86 and 88, the former of which can be bent out along the line 90 so as to overlie and holddown a fore part of the toy. The folded-in top flap 72 exerts a downward bias on the flap part 86 so as to improve its contact with the toy. (FIG. 8).

The flaps 76 and 78 aretapered at their bottoms as at 92 and 94 respectively so as not to interfere with upward movement of the folded-in flap 74.

FIG. 10 shows a further form of carton having four flaps that can be folded in, but in this case the bottom flap 102 has a pair of rectangular apertures'which, when the flaps are folded in, receives the front and rear inner wheels of the toy, the inherent springiness of the material again serving to bias the flap 102 upwardly. As before, the end flaps are so shaped as to allow the flap 102 to spring up.

We claim:

1. An article-containing package comprising a box of relatively stiff yet yieldable material and having top, bottom, end and backwalls and an open front through which an article is insertable and displayable, said box being so dimensioned as to relatively snugly confine the article against vertical and endwise movement, said bottom wall having an integral forward flap folded back into the box and over said bottom wall to combine with said bottom wall in providing a floor structure, said flap having a rear edge portion spaced forwardly from the backwall to provide a recess at the back of the floor structure for accommodating a rear lower part of the inserted article, said flap being inherently resilient so as to be depressible as the article is inserted and so as to be upwardly movable after the article enters the recess, means included in said floor structure operative incidental to upward movement of said flap for engaging said article so as to block forward removal of the article from the box; and said bottom having an opening therein for upward access to enable manual upward movement of said article-engaging means after insertion of the article 2. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the floor structure includes an insert confined between the bottom wall and the folded-in flap and manually engageable through said opening to move both said flap and a portion of said insert upwardly as aforesaid to block removal of the article.

3. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the insert includes additional portions lying along the insides of the top and end walls and said top and end walls respectively include forward flaps folded back over and confining said additional insert portions.

4. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the box includes a further, rear insert lying along said rear wall and occupying part of said first-mentioned recess and further having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess.

5. The invention defined in claim 4, in which said rear insert is a double-walled element.

6. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the box includes a rear insert lying along said rear wall and having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess.

7. The invention defined in claim 6, in which said rear insert is a double-walled element.

8. An article-containing package comprising a box of relatively stiff yet yieldable material and having top, bottom, end and backwalls and an open front through which an article is insertable and displayable, said box being so dimensioned as to relatively snugly confine the article against vertical and endwise movement, each of said walls having an integral forward flap folded back into the box and over its respective wall, each flap having a rear edge portion spaced forwardly from the backwall to provide a marginal recess interiorly of the box, the recess afforded by the bottom flap accommodating a rear lower part of the inserted article, said bottom flap being inherently resilient so as to be depressible as the article is inserted and so as to be upwardly movable after the article enters the recess, said bottom and bottom flap combining to provide a floor structure, means included in said floor structure operative incidental to upward movement of said flap for engaging said article so as to block forward removal of the article from the box, a further rear insert lying along said rear wall and occupying part of said first-mentioned recess and further having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess. 

1. An article-containing package comprising a box of relatively stiff yet yieldable material and having top, bottom, end and backwalls and an open front through which an article is insertable and displayable, said box being so dimensioned as to relatively snugly confine the article against vertical and endwise movement, said bottom wall having an integral forward flap folded back into the box and over said bottom wall to combine with said bottom wall in providing a floor structure, said flap having a rear edge portion spaced forwardly from the backwall to provide a recess at the back of the floor structure for accommodating a rear lower part of the inserted article, said flap being inherently resilient so as to be depressible as the article is inserted and so as to be upwardly movable after the article enters the recess, means included in said floor structure operative incidental to upward movement of said flap for engaging said article so as to block forward removal of the article from the box; and said bottom having an opening therein for upward access to enable manual upward movement of said article-engaging means after insertion of the article.
 2. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the floor structure includes an insert confined between the bottom wall and the folded-in flap and manually engageable through said opening to move both said flap and a portion of said insert upwardly as aforesaid to block removal of the article.
 3. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the insert includes additional portions lying along the insides of the top and end walls and said top and end walls respectively include forward flaps folded back over and confining said additional insert portions.
 4. The invention defined in claim 2, in which the box includes a further, rear insert lying along said rear wall and occupying part of said first-mentioned recess and further having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess.
 5. The invention defined in claim 4, in which said rear insert is a double-walled element.
 6. The invention defined in claim 1, in which the box includes a rear insert lying along said rear wall and having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess.
 7. The invention defined in claim 6, in which said rear insert is a double-walled element.
 8. An article-containing package comprising a box of relatively stiff yet yieldable material and having top, bottom, end and backwalls and an open front through which an article is insertable and displayable, said box being so dimensioned as to relatively snugly confine the article against vertical and endwise movement, each of said walls having an integral forward flap folded back into the box and over its respective wall, each flap having a rear edge portion spaced forwardly from the backwall to provide a marginal recess interiorly of the box, the recess afforded by the bottom flap accommodating a rear lower part of the inserted article, said bottom flap being inherently resilient so as to be depressible as the article is inserted and so as to be upwardly movable after the article enters the recess, said bottom and bottom flap combining to provide a floor structure, means included in said floor structure operative incidental to upward movement of said flap for engaging said article so as to block forward removal of the article from The box, a further rear insert lying along said rear wall and occupying part of said first-mentioned recess and further having an article-receiving recess therein additional to said first mentioned recess. 